"I wanted to be a different kind of father."
She nodded.
"You are."
He smiled faintly.
"I try."
Nora reached across the table.
Placed her hand near his.
Not touching.
Just offering closeness.
Daniel looked down.
Then placed his fingers over hers.
For a moment, they were quiet.
Then he asked something he had wanted to know for weeks.
"Did you ever want children?"
Nora looked toward the window.
The lake shimmered beneath the fading light.
"Yes."
Daniel waited.
She continued.
"For a while, I assumed I would have them someday."
"What happened?"
She considered the question.
"Work happened. Relationships didn't last. Years passed faster than I realized."
Her expression grew sad.
"Then eventually the question became less about when and more about whether."
Daniel nodded slowly.
"Do you regret it?"
Nora took a breath.
"Sometimes."
She looked toward him.
"But I try not to turn my entire life into a collection of things that didn't happen."
He smiled softly.
"That's wise."
She laughed.
"Some days."
For several moments, neither spoke.
Then Nora looked toward him.
"I love that you have Lucy."
Daniel's expression softened.
She continued.
"But I know she's your daughter, and she has a mother who mattered enormously."
He nodded.
"She does."
Nora squeezed his fingers gently.
"I wouldn't want to erase any part of that."
Daniel looked at her for a long moment.
Then he whispered, "Thank you."
The words were simple.
But Nora understood their weight.
After dinner, they walked beside the lake.
The air was warm.
The sky had turned lavender.
Small boats moved across the water.
Daniel kept his pace comfortable, still mindful of his recovery.
Nora walked beside him.
For a while, they spoke about the town.
Then Daniel turned toward her.
"Can I ask you something?"
She smiled.
"Anything."
He hesitated.
"When you look at me, what do you see?"
Nora stopped walking.
The question surprised her.
Daniel continued.
"Do you see the boy on the bridge?"
She considered it carefully.
"Sometimes."
He nodded.
"And the man?"
She looked into his face.
The silver hair.
The weathered skin.
The tired but gentle eyes.
The lines around his mouth.
She took a breath.
"I see someone who built the kind of home he used to dream about."
Daniel went still.